Media attention to cases of food poisoning, strep infections, and the like due to microbial contamination has increased public awareness of the dangers posed by inadequate hygiene, particularly in the food service and health industries. Bacteria found on the skin can be divided into two groups: resident and transient bacteria. Resident bacteria are Gram positive bacteria which are established as permanent microcolonies on the surface and outermost layers of the skin and play an important, helpful role in preventing the colonization of other, more harmful bacteria and fungi. Transient bacteria are bacteria which are not part of the normal resident flora of the skin, but can be deposited when airborne contaminated material lands on the skin or when contaminated material is brought into physical contact with it. Transient bacteria are also typically divided into Gram positive and Gram negative subclasses. Gram positive bacteria include pathogens such as Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus pyogenes and Clostridium botulinum. Gram negative bacteria include pathogens such as Salmonella, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella, Haemophilus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Proteus and Shigella dysenteriae. Gram negative bacteria are generally distinguished from Gram positive by an additional protective cell membrane which generally results in the Gram negative bacteria being less susceptible to topical antibacterial actives. The American Society of Microbiologists has indicated that adequate hand washing will greatly reduce the incidence of communicable diseases.
Washing of the skin, especially the hands, with antimicrobial soap formulations can remove many viruses and bacteria from the washed surfaces. Removal of the viruses and bacteria is due to the surfactancy of the soap and the mechanical action of the wash procedure. Therefore, it is known and recommended that the people wash frequently to reduce the spread of viruses and bacteria. Recent surveys, however, have revealed that while nearly 95% of people claim to have washed their hands after use of public restrooms, actual observations reveal that this figure does not exceed about 66%. Notwithstanding increased awareness, there is a tendency to rush the hand washing process which leads to inadequate hygiene. A number of systems and devices to encourage longer and more thorough handwashing have accordingly been developed.
Collopy in United States Patent Application 2002/0061500 discloses a hand-washing device containing a display panel that encourages the user to wash their hands for about 15 seconds to remove germs. Gorra, U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,910 discloses method and apparatus for monitoring and reporting hand washing, which includes a sensor for signaling the dispensation of a cleaning agent from a dispenser, and a reporting and monitoring module. Allen et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,781,942 discloses wash stations and method of operation, which monitors hand washing and assists in hand washing. These systems are relatively expensive and difficult to implement; oftentimes involving training and monitoring personnel. Even when such steps have been taken, there is little certainty that all personnel have followed proper washing procedures.
So also, while many antimicrobial liquid hand soap compositions have been proposed, effectiveness of antimicrobial agents in the soap may be limited by the thoroughness of the washing procedure as is appreciated by reference to the patents and publications of the preceding paragraph. Another drawback of liquid compositions is that liquid soap tends to be difficult to apply to a targeted area such that it is retained on the desired surface. That is to say, liquid soap tends to drip off the hands before lathering and thus much of the antimicrobial activity of the composition is lost even before the hand washing process has been effectively started.